THE CITY OF BEAUTIFUL VIEWS
If the capital of Argentina deserves to be called the “City of Good
Airs,” then the capital of Brazil should be termed Buenas Vistas, the
“City of Beautiful Views.” Of all the cities in the world Rio de Janeiro
best deserves to be called by that name. This is not my opinion alone,
but it is the almost unanimous verdict of this most beautiful city.
Everywhere that the eye falls, it is met with a view that is a worthy
subject for the artist’s brush. The camera fiend is kept busy “pressing
the button,” for at almost every turn there is the temptation to expose
the sensitive plate which will reproduce the scene that so appeals to the
eye. But, although the plate or film faithfully reproduces the outline
and detail of the scene, the blue of the sky and the waters of the bay,
the green of the palms, and the other trees, the colours of the flowers
which are omnipresent, and the bright and varied tints of the houses are
sadly missing in the resulting photograph. All of these are absolutely
necessary to complete the picture, which lingers in the memory of one who
has visited this second city of South America.
When the early navigators sailed up the island-studded bay, which leads
to the present site of the capital of Brazil, they thought it must surely
be the mouth of a broad river, and, as it was in the month of January,
they named it, for want of a better name, Rio de Janeiro, the River of
January, and the name has clung to the bay and settlement, which has
grown into a thriving city, during the succeeding four centuries. No
one, however, since that time has been able to discover the supposed
river which led to the name. So this city of lovely views and of romantic
history bears, and has always borne, a name which is a misnomer, but this
fact has not affected either the beauty of the scene or the development
of the city. It is simply another illustration of the saying that there
is little in a name, and a rose by any other name would smell just as
sweet. The inhabitant of the city is even called a “flumenense,” from the
word meaning a river.
The full name of Brazil’s capital is San Sebastian de Rio de Janeiro,
and its foundation dates back to the year 1566, when a landing was
effected here by a few colonists near the famous Sugar Loaf mountain.
A citadel was built on a hill now called Morro do Castillo. Near this
was next erected a church called San Sebastian, in honour of the city’s
patron saint, which ancient structure is still standing as one of the few
memorials of the remote past, and within its walls rest the remains of
the city’s founder, Estacio de Sá. There are still a few other relics of
these earlier days, but most of them have been greatly altered, and many
of them practically rebuilt.
For a couple of centuries Brazil was the seat of Portuguese power in the
new world, and it was the centre of many political struggles during the
capitancias. It pulsated with that excitement that can only be found in
Latin cities, and many a plot and counterplot has been batched within its
environs. For a while, during Napoleon’s occupancy of the throne, it was
the seat of government, for the royal family of Portugal fled to these
hospitable shores, and all the wealth, pomp, splendour and gayety of a
powerful and extravagant court was transferred to this city. This lasted
only for a short time, for Napoleon was overthrown, and the royal family
returned to the mother land. Political discontent in Brazil soon led to
the establishment of an independent empire, with the son of the reigning
monarch of Portugal as the ruler of the new nation.
Rio, for nearly every one uses the short appellation, has seen many
changes. Starting as a small settlement of adventurers, it became
successively the capital of a capitancia, a province, a kingdom, an
empire and a republic. All of the latter changes have taken place within
the last century. And yet, among all those changes, from the extreme
of capitancia to republic, there has been none which so completely
affected the appearance, and perhaps final destiny of the city, as the
metamorphosis which has taken place during the past half dozen years.
The visitor to the Rio of a decade ago, with its antiquated streets,
old-fashioned architecture and foul-smelling open-sewered public
thoroughfares, which more nearly resembled alleys than streets, would
scarcely recognize the new capital of broad avenues, clean, well-swept
pavements and the beautiful boulevard which follows the sweep of the bay
for many miles.
[Illustration: AVENIDA CENTRAL, RIO DE JANEIRO.]
The old has not been entirely displaced by the new, for the famous
Ouvidor still remains, and during all the business hours of the day is
filled with a throng of shoppers, business men and the idle who spend
their waking hours in the cafés or other resorts. It is still the great
shopping as well as gossiping street. The people spread themselves over
the sidewalk and street, for all other traffic is excluded from this
street during those hours. It still possesses some of the best stores
and the best of everything that pleases the Brazilians. Thousands of
people pass through this street each day, who come for no other purpose
than to shake hands with and talk to friends. It may be that their only
desire is to see and to be seen. The officeholder comes here to feel the
pulse of the people, and the politician tries to hold a public reception
on the sidewalk. It is likewise a cosmopolitan crowd, for one will find
not only all classes of Brazilians, but many other nationalities. Swells
with silk hats bump up against half-dressed negroes with loads on their
heads. Lottery peddlers accost you on every corner, and sometimes pester
you until it becomes an annoyance. Many of the other streets might be
recognized as they have not been changed, although the nomenclature is
different, for there has been a new set of heroes and notables, whose
names should be preserved in this public way. Nearly all of the old
names have disappeared from the signs that face the traveller on all the
corners. Even on old Ouvidor, instead of that familiar word, appears in
places the name of Moreira Cesar. Other new names are 15th of November,
7th of September, Gonçalves Diaz (the poet), etc., etc.
A few years ago the city fathers decided that they would transform the
capital and make it not only a beautiful but a more beautiful city.
Engineers and architects were employed, plans were drawn up and work was
begun on an elaborate scale, which has not been entirely completed as
yet. Perhaps the most remarkable feature of the work was the construction
of the Avenida Central through the centre of the city, from sea to sea,
and its continuation around the bay where it is called Avenida Beira Mar.
The Avenida Central starts at a section of the city called the Mauá, and
extends through the heart of the city for a mile to the Monroe Palace.
A few years ago this was a tangle of narrow, foul-smelling streets and
lanes, which the government was compelled to buy at a large figure.
Night and day forces were set at work tearing down the old buildings,
removing the débris, constructing the drainage and paving, so that the
progress made was remarkably rapid for a tropical country, or for any
country or clime. Over three thousand men were kept at work night and
day, and four hundred buildings were demolished to carry out the work.
In less than two years the change was accomplished, and now this avenue,
one hundred and five feet in width, with broad pavements made of mosaic
worked into odd designs, a row of brazil trees on each curb, and in the
centre, alternating with artistic lamp-posts, has the appearance of one
of the famous avenues of Paris. Fine new buildings have been built on
each side, many of them of really artistic design and finish. The rounded
corner has been used at the street intersections, the building line being
on a curve of a considerable radius. This adds a beauty and dignity to
the architecture of buildings that is lacking in the cities of the United
States.
[Illustration: ONE OF THE BENDS OF THE BEIRA MAR, RIO DE JANEIRO.]
The Monroe Palace, which is a reproduction of the Brazilian building at
the St. Louis Exposition, and which received a medal for its artistic
design, marks the boundary between the two avenues. The building was
completed in 1906, and the sessions of the Pan-American conference were
held in it during that year, for which it had been specially constructed.
It is a beautiful building, and stands in a location where it appears to
the very best possible advantage. Here the Beira Mar (around the sea)
begins, and it is so named because it runs between the hills and the
bay, and follows the outline of the latter. Much of it is made land,
and occupies what was at one time the favourite breeding place of the
mosquitoes which were formerly the pest of this city. Double roadways
in places, of different elevations, small parks, and the ever-varying
outline of hill and bay, the intense shades of green of the dense
vegetation, and the palms in stately rows and silhouetted against
the horizon make this avenue the most beautiful and most fascinating
boulevard in the world. I never tired of riding along the Beira Mar,
for the angle of vision is constantly changing in its many turns and
twists, and every change is only a new vision of beauty and interest.
Thus the drive leads out past the Praia da Lapa, the Praia da Russell and
the Praia da Flamengo until it ends in the horseshoe curve of Botafogo,
where the exposition of 1908 was held and the buildings of which are yet
standing. The Beira Mar is one of the favourite residence districts, and
it is lined here and there with beautiful homes. It is easy to go into
raptures over such scenes, and dull indeed is the soul that could not be
stirred by them.
[Illustration: THE LANDING AT RIO DE JANEIRO.]
Among the other streets which have been widened is the Rua Uruguayana,
which starts at the custom house and cuts across the city at right angles
to the Avenida Central. It is a broad street for a Latin city, but is not
so wide as the other. The Avenida do Mangue is a picturesque street, with
its quadruple line of stately palms which run its entire length of a mile
or more. Rio is the home of the royal palm, and you see them all over
the city. The trees are round and smooth and almost as symmetrical as if
cut by a sculptor. No avenue of marble columns can equal these furnished
by nature. The Canal do Mangue runs through the centre of the Mangue and
there are four driveways along it, two on either side of the canal, as
it is very broad. Leaving the palms and following the canal, the avenue
makes a broad sweep and leads out to the new docks which are being
constructed at great expense. Immense warehouses have been built and
great cranes erected, but they are not in use, because it is necessary
to dredge a channel before the ocean-going vessels of deep draught can
reach the docks. Work is progressing, however, and it will not be long
until it will no longer be necessary for vessels to anchor out in the
open, and for both passengers and freight to be brought ashore either in
launches or row boats. Thus will one of the annoyances as well as one of
the big items of expense at this port be eliminated. Along the line of
warehouses, and parallel with the harbour line, an avenue has been laid
out that is more than three hundred feet in width. This gives abundant
room for railroad tracks, tram tracks and driveways for both wagons and
pleasure vehicles.
There are many pretty little parks scattered over the city, each one of
which is a miniature of beauty. The Jardim do Passeio Publico, near the
Monroe Palace, is one of these. Its profusion of vegetation is such as
can only be seen in a tropical climate, where there is no destroying
frost and where a kind nature encourages growth during the entire year.
The Praça da Republica is in the very centre of the city, and is the
largest park in the city proper. It was the chief theatre of action in
the memorable events in which the country was changed from an empire to
a republic within the short period of twenty-four hours. Because of this
event the name was changed from its former name of Praça d’Acclamacão.
There are many statues, in this and all the other parks, of men who have
been famous in the country’s history. One of the most noted is that of
Dom Pedro I in the Praça Tiradentes, which represents him in the act of
shouting the watchword “Independence or death,” after he received the
message from the Portuguese Cortes at Ypiranga, just outside the city of
São Paulo. There is also a fine monument to the Duke de Caxais, one of
the heroes of the Paraguayan war, in a park which bears his name. Another
striking feature of the city is the ancient Carioca Aqueduct, which is a
monument of picturesque grandeur where its lofty arches loom up over the
comparatively low buildings. It was built more than a century and a half
ago, but still remains as solid and substantial as when first built. It
is now used by the tramway company as a part of its line which ascends
the hill leading up to the Corcovado.
There are many charitable institutions in the city for the care of
unfortunates and the amelioration of suffering. There are orphan asylums,
free clinics for the treatment of various troubles, an institution
maintained by the society formed to combat the plague of tuberculosis,
and institutions for the care of the deaf and dumb, blind and insane.
The largest hospital in Rio de Janeiro, and perhaps on South American
soil, is the Santa Casa de Misericordia, which was founded by the Sisters
of Mercy in 1545. The buildings now occupied by this noted institution
have been in use for nearly three-quarters of a century, but they have
recently been overhauled and remodelled. The buildings are in a classic
and beautiful style of architecture, as are most of the public buildings
in Brazil. It has accommodation for more than twelve hundred patients.
One of the strange and unusual features of this hospital is a revolving
wheel made for the reception of unwelcome infants. In this wheel a cradle
is so arranged that when an infant is laid on it the wheel turns around,
and the little stranger finds a welcome it did not find elsewhere. No
questions are asked, no effort is made to find out who placed the infant
in the cradle, and the babe is taken care of until it is ready to go
forth and work for itself, or has been adopted by some good family.
If this institution does nothing else, it takes away the incentive to
infanticide which prevails in many places. There is also in the city a
Strangers’ Hospital, which is mainly supported by the foreign residents
of the capital, and it is an institution that has done a great deal of
good among those who are expatriated from their homes by the exigencies
of business.
The market is always an interesting place to visit in a Latin country,
for the life to be seen there is unique. The market scenes in Rio are
not so picturesque as in the cities farther inland, but there are still
many unique scenes to be witnessed. It is situated just at one side of
the Plaza 15th of November, and on the water front, so that the fishing
boats can unload direct into the market and the garbage can easily be
disposed of. The building is large and commodious, of an indifferent
architecture, but well adapted to its purposes. The deepest impression
made upon a visit to this place is the decidedly tropical characteristics
to be seen everywhere. Tropical fruits, consisting of oranges, bananas,
pineapples, mangoes, mammão, etc., are to be seen in great abundance
everywhere. The salted meat so commonly used is stacked up like cordwood.
It has a strong smell and is very salty, but it is much liked by the
common people, and frequently brings a better price than fresh beef. Fat
pork is salted in the same way and done up in rolls from which slices are
cut off for the customer. This fat is usually used in cooking the beans
which form such an important article of food. There are many kinds of
strange fish in that department, for the waters along the coast of Brazil
are filled with excellent fish. One fish, which is quite large, is very
peculiar, because its eyes extend out an inch or more from its head. Then
there are little jelly fish in great numbers, and a little creature that
looks like a miniature devil-fish which seems to be a favourite article
of food. Shrimps and oysters will also be found for sale. Birds of
brilliant plumage await the buyers in their cages, while green and purple
parrots sit sedately on their perches and fill the air with their rough
screeches. Chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys and guinea pigs are found
in abundance, and even dogs are caged up awaiting new owners. But the
numerous monkeys, from the little marmosettes to the big ones three or
four feet high, who sit and blink at you like curious little old men,
will probably hold the attention of the northern visitor longer than any
other one feature of the market at Rio de Janeiro.
To this market come the hucksters from all parts of the city for their
supplies, which they then peddle from door to door. Fish and vegetables
are carried in baskets that are hung on the ends of a long pole, which
is balanced across the shoulder. A score or more of fowls may be placed
in a basket which the peripatetic merchant carries around on his head,
while the inmates cackle and crow along the way. The bread merchant
carries his stock in trade on his head, in a contrivance which looks
more like a baby-crib than anything else. Onions and garlic are carried
on strings with the stems woven together with straw. Along the streets
one will constantly hear the oddly varying cries of these house-to-house
merchants, the flute-like whistles which some of them carry, and the
clapping of sticks by others or the strangely penetrating noise of the
scissors-grinder, which is made by touching a piece of metal to the
grindstone.
From the standpoint of comfort the great and imposing Avenida Central is
a failure. The sun beats down unmercifully during the hot days, and it
is not half so comfortable as streets like the Ouvidor, Gonçalves Diaz,
Quintana and others of the business streets which are so narrow that
they are shaded from curb to curb during most of the day, and the sun
does not really have a fair chance to get in its work. It is, however,
the centre of the street life, and at all times is a study of Brazilian
life. There is always a crowd of men in the many cafés, which line this
street on either side, and the tables of which are set out over half the
broad sidewalk, or more. After eating his noon breakfast, a man never
takes his coffee at the same restaurant, but always goes to one of the
cafés where he sips a small cup of strong, black coffee, smokes a few
cigarettes and gossips with his friends. The Brazilians drink coffee as
the German drinks beer—not in such great quantities, but fully as often.
In fact they drink so much that it must have got into their complexions.
A Brazilian proverb says that good coffee must be as “strong as Satan,
as black as ink, as hot as hades and as sweet as love.” It is certainly
black and strong, is served hot and enough sugar is used to make it very
sweet.
One is struck with the vivacity of the groups of men, who talk with
their hands, head, face and eyes, as well as with their mouths. Another
thing that impressed me was the uncomfortable style of dress, for the
average “flumenense” wears a rather heavy suit and derby hat in this hot
climate, and would never think of dispensing with his vest under any
circumstances. To make up for this one may often see the men carrying
fans and briskly fanning themselves. Where these young men, who are
clerks in business houses, or hold small-salaried government positions,
get the money to spend in these cafés is a mystery to me; for all drinks
are exceedingly high-priced, with the exception of coffee, which is
uniformly sold for one hundred reis, equal to three cents in our money.
In the matter of clothes, however, they are more economical, and they do
not dress as well as the ladies whom they delight to watch.
[Illustration: CARIGADORES MOVING A PIANO.]
From three to five in the afternoon the Avenida, from the Ouvidor to
the Avenida Hotel, is crowded with well-dressed ladies who make these
few blocks a sort of promenade. One will see handsomely gowned matrons,
demure little maidens, and _senhoritas_ who are just beginning to seek
the favours of the young men, and this gives them an opportunity to see
and be seen. The ladies wear huge Parisian hats and high heels, and are
gowned elaborately. Powder, paste, rouge and other cosmetics are much
in evidence, even among the younger ones, whose complexions hardly need
such aids to freshness. The figures are plump, and those of the matrons
have reached a stoutness that must be distressing to them. The men, whose
narrow shoulders and thin chests are in striking contrast to the plump
figures of the ladies, sit at the street tables of the cafés and watch
them as they pass; but they rather like than resent this, for it is the
custom of the country, and a long look is a mark of flattery which they
appreciate.
In the streets there is a constant movement. Carriages with liveried
drivers, high-wheeled carts loaded with freight, curious little Japanese
“kiosks,” in which walks a vendor of _dulces_, and _carigadores_ with
loads upon their heads pass along in endless procession. I have seen
pianos thus borne upon the heads of four men pass along the Avenida.
Other heavy articles of furniture, and large panes of plate glass are
carried in the same way. The old-fashioned, two-wheeled tilbury, so
common here, whisks along at as lively a rate as the horse can go. Only
one passenger dares ride in one of them, or a great commotion will be
raised among the other tilbury drivers. The “fon-fon” of the automobile
is constantly heard. A line of auto omnibuses is run along this avenue,
and then some of the four hundred or more private autos will be in view
at any time. Ice is delivered by automobile, for quick delivery is
important in a hot climate when the price is three cents a pound. The
automobile ambulance is sure to pass along, as it is always on the go,
and then there are a number of auto deliveries, police hurry-up wagons,
fire trucks, and even a street sprinkler propelled by gasoline.
[Illustration: THE TREASURY BUILDING, RIO DE JANEIRO.]
The police are omnipresent, and are to be found everywhere. There are
three classes of these guardians of the public peace: the civil, the
military and the mounted police. The former are under the prefect,
and the military police, who wear a different uniform, are under the
authority of the minister of war. The military police may be seen
several times a day, marching along in large or small squads with a
bugler to announce their coming. The civil police are more numerous but
less conspicuous. It is said that there are oftentimes more or less
serious conflicts of authority between the two police organizations. The
military police department has a number of auto patrol wagons which are
frequently seen on the streets. Whenever a call is sent to headquarters
a wagon is loaded up with ten or a dozen officers, and is then sent
pell-mell through the streets to the point of call, and frequently two
wagons thus loaded will appear. Perhaps the occasion of the call is some
harmless drunk (although drunkenness is not common), and it seems a joke
to see such a formidable force appear upon such an occasion. At night, a
policeman may be found upon almost any corner, and, if there is safety in
numbers, then Rio de Janeiro is a very secure place in which to live.
Along the Avenida are many fine office buildings belonging to private
concerns, some of which cover almost an entire square, and many of
which are truly architecturally beautiful structures. Perhaps among the
finest of these are the homes of three of the leading newspapers; the
_Jornal do Commercio_, _Jornal do Brazil_ and _O Paiz_. The variety
of architecture prevents any appearance of monotony. The Caixa de
Amortizacão, or treasury building, where the paper and gold money are
exchanged and equalized, is a very beautiful building on the corner of
the Rua Uruguayana. Near the other end of the Avenida are several fine
public buildings. One of these is the new Art Museum, and another the new
National Library, neither of which were quite finished at the time of my
visit. The Municipal Building is a unique and ornate building, brilliant
in colour and adorned with many statues. A number of stately palms which
stand near the building give it a very fine setting. The most beautiful
and striking building of all, however, is the magnificent Municipal
Theatre, which stands in a conspicuous location at a street intersection,
and in spacious dimensions, as well as stately appearance, well rivals
the far famed Opera House of Paris. It was built by the municipality
and cost several millions of dollars, and is said to have a capacity of
twenty thousand persons.
[Illustration: THE CITY HALL, RIO DE JANEIRO.]
Rio de Janeiro has been transformed. It used to be that the traveller,
frightened at the idea of yellow fever, would come here with his ears and
brain throbbing from the effects of quinine. He would walk over the city
with a smelling bottle under his nose for fear of contagion. Now it is
different. Once the home of yellow fever, smallpox and other plagues,
this great city has been renovated and overhauled, until now it is as
healthful as the average city. The municipal government deserves great
credit for the energetic and thorough manner in which this work has been
done. Hundreds of miles of underground sewers have supplanted the open
gutters of former days, and with the disappearance of the open sewers has
vanished the unpleasant odours which formerly pervaded the atmosphere.
Low, marshy ground has been filled up. The people were compelled to
remove the dirt from the tiles in which moss and fungi had grown, and
cement the joints so that there would be nothing to retain dampness.
The first floors of all buildings must be made of tile or cement, so
that rats can not get into the houses. And then the people scrub and
clean, and clean and scrub, in most parts of the city, so that it is
a fair rival of a Dutch town. The street cleaning department is alert
and active, so that the streets in general are cleaner than the average
American city. It is only when one of the heavy rain storms breaks on the
city that it is different, and then tons of red sand and mud are washed
down from the hills, and the street commissioner has his hands full for
a few days to clean up this mud. These tropical rains are veritable
downpours, and the amount of water that falls during even a comparatively
short rain is almost incredible.
[Illustration: THE “WHITE HOUSE” OF BRAZIL.]
The visitor is first inclined to look lightly upon the brilliant and
variegated colourings of the houses and other buildings, and think that
it is very much overdone. The longer one stays there, however, the more
the colouring seems to be in harmony with the tropics. Such brilliant
colours and light, airy effects would be entirely out of place in a land
where the trees lost their foliage, and snow covered the ground during a
part of the year. But here, where the sky is so blue, where the foliage
is ever green and where the sun is so bright, even the light blues and
greens, the pinks and terra-cotta colourings on the houses finally seem
in harmony. Sometimes, under a porch, one will see a landscape painting
on the wall of the house, and many of these paintings are well done.
The style of architecture is Portuguese and differs from the Spanish
style, which always includes a little court, or patio, in the centre.
In the Brazilian homes of the better class, a little green yard is
maintained in front of the houses, where a few flowers and shrubs are
cultivated, and, if large enough, a palm or two will be found. There is
no fine grass, however, such as grows in cooler climes, for the grass
found is very coarse and is planted stalk by stalk. A high iron fence
generally separates the yard from the street. In some of the better
homes with large yards, a little pavilion, or lookout, is built near the
street, from which the ladies of the family may view the processions and
_festas_, which are such a common occurrence here. These take the place
of the balconies erected for ladies where the houses are built up to the
street line as in the Spanish architecture.
The public buildings are scattered over different sections of the city,
but most of them not already enumerated are of rather indifferent
architecture. The Casa da Moeda (mint), the Congress and Senate
buildings, the Navy and War Departments and the President’s Mansion
are all in different sections. The latter bears several statues on the
roof, and connected with it are some very fine gardens. The National
Library contains a valuable collection of more than four hundred thousand
books, manuscripts and other important documents. The National Museum
is one of the oldest institutions in the capital. Originally intended
only as a museum of natural history, it has been extended until now it
includes all kinds of collections of scientific interest. It contains a
fine collection of specimens of animal and insect life in Brazil, and
specimens of the art and handiwork of the aboriginal tribes who still
inhabit many sections of the republic.
A splendid system of electric tramways exists under the management of a
company composed of American and Canadian capitalists. The routes are
rather complicated, and are quite confusing to the visitor at first. The
cars are called “bonds,” and the origin of the name is rather curious.
When the system was first inaugurated the people, who had heard a great
deal about American “bonds” in connection with the negotiations, applied
that name to the cars when they finally appeared, and the name has clung
to them ever since.
The city of Rio de Janeiro and its environs constitute the Federal
District, which is similar to the District of Columbia. The municipal
organization is controlled by the national government, but the people are
not disfranchised as in our own capital. The inhabitants of the district
elect three senators and ten deputies to the National Congress, and also
a city council of ten members which meets in session twice each year.
The chief executive is the Prefect, who is appointed by the President and
holds office for five years, unless previously removed. Under him are
several boards, through which the several departments of public work are
transacted.
In 1908 there was held in Rio an exposition in celebration of the
centennial of the opening of that port, and the other Brazilian ports to
the commerce of the world. The federal government appropriated a million
dollars for its palace and exhibit, and nearly all of the states erected
buildings, and appropriated a goodly sum toward the expenses. The United
States and Portugal were the only two foreign nations invited to take
a part in the exposition. The location was a most beautiful one at the
extreme end of the Beira Mar, and almost under the shadow of old Sugar
Loaf and Corcovado. A number of the buildings erected were of a permanent
character, and these, as well as many of the state buildings, still stand.
In striking contrast to the Rio of to-day was that of a century ago, when
foreign nations were first given the privilege of trading there. The
following extracts are made from “Notices of Brazil,” published in 1831
by an English writer:
“When the country was opened to the enterprise of foreigners, it was
not at all surprising that the City of Rio and its commerce should
have increased with an unexampled rapidity. Such was the avidity of
speculation in England, that everything was sent to Brazil without the
smallest regard to its fitness or adaptation to the climate, or the wants
of the people who were to purchase them. The shops were ransacked and
swept; and the consideration was not what should be sent, but how soon
could it arrive. In this way, when the multitude of cases were opened
at the custom-house, I have been told, the Brazilians could not contain
their astonishment and mirth at the incongruous things they saw displayed
before them; implements useful only to Canadians and Greenlanders, and
comforts and conveniences fit only for polar latitudes, were cased up and
sent in abundance to regions between the tropics.
“Among this ingenious selection was a large supply of warm blankets,
warming-pans to heat them, and, to complete the climax of absurdity,
skates to enable the Brazilians to enjoy wholesome exercise on the ice,
in a region where a particle of frost or a flake of snow was never seen.
However ridiculous or wasteful this may seem, these incongruous articles
were not lost in a new country, where necessity and ingenuity could apply
things to a use for which they were never intended by the sage exporters.
Even the apparently hopeless and inconvertible skate was turned to a
useful purpose. Then, as well as now, there was nothing in the country
so scarce as wrought iron for shoeing mules and horses; and though
“ferradors,” or smiths, are to be met at every rancho, “ferraduras,”
or shoes, are seldom to be had. When the people, therefore, found they
could not use these contrivances on their own, they applied them to their
horses’ feet; and many an animal has actually travelled on English skates
from Rio to Villa Rica.
“The bustle and activity of the place give a high idea of the commerce of
Rio. A multitude of negroes are constantly employed, who labour without
intermission the whole day in removing packages of different kinds. They
are generally lying open, either to be, or after having been examined;
and it presents really a curious and interesting spectacle to pass along
the courts and warerooms, through manufactures of every kind, and from
all parts of the globe.
“Having waded through these, I mounted upstairs, and I saw a multitude of
persons hard at work, as if it had been a large factory. These were the
stampers: every article, even to a single pair of gloves, stockings or
shoes, when the duty is paid, must be distinguished by this stamp. Three
or four hundred persons were engaged in this work. One ran the thread
through the corner of the stockings or shoes; another looped it to a
little perforated pellet of lead; and a third pressed it flat by striking
on it a stamp of the Imperial Arms. Any article, however minute, that
has not this attachment to it, is liable to be seized as contraband. The
process of stamping every article, however, is so tedious and troublesome
that it is found to impede business very much, and the fees on the leaden
stamp come to twice as much as the duty on the goods in the cost of
pieces of tape and other smaller things.”